*)UN, Arab league Israel to drop annexation plans

UN, European and Arab powers have all warned Israel that its imminent plan to annex Palestinian land would deal a major blow to peace.

The US, at a UN meeting, declined to criticise the move which comes off the back of President Donald Trump’s Middle East plan.

Arab League secretary general Ahmed Aboul Gheit warned the annexation could ignite “a religious war in and beyond” in the Middle East.

*)Trump says US moving troops to Poland

US President Donald Trump and his Polish counterpart, Andrzej Duda, have met at the White House, saying they look forward to signing a defence cooperation agreement.

Trump has promised to send US troops from Germany to Poland, a move he says sends a strong message to Russia.

Duda is the first world leader to visit the US since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

*)Beijing officials declare outbreak ‘under control’

China has reported 19 newly confirmed cases of coronavirus amid mass testing in Beijing.

Authorities have raced to contain the outbreak, which has been linked to the largest wholesale food market in Beijing.

The city increased its daily testing capacity to 300,000 from 100,000 per day in early June and has tested nearly 3 million people since.

*)Three men indicted in Ahmaud Arbery case

A prosecutor in Georgia has indicted three men on murder charges in the killing of another black man.

Ahmaud Arbery was shot while running in a suburban neighbourhood in February.

It was only when a video of the killing went viral on social media at the beginning of May that the investigation began in earnest.

*)Smaller Toronto film festival plans virtual red carpets

The Toronto film festival is going ahead in September despite the coronavirus pandemic, organisers announced.

However, the red carpets will be virtual and far fewer movies will be premiered.

North America's largest film festival usually screens 300 to 400 feature and short films from dozens of countries each year.